Leopard with bananas: how a two-colour riso poster is made

The leopard and banana riso poster, in two-colour riso style

The banana leopard is one of the posters people ask me about most. It is printed in just two inks, fluorescent yellow and black, and still glows across the room.

The last time I printed it, I took my phone and filmed how it comes together, from the computer to the studio wall.

1. One file per colour

Eliška at the computer preparing the black layer, a yellow print beside her

Before printing, I split the drawing into colours. Each colour gets its own greyscale file: black takes the outlines and spots, yellow the body and the bananas.

The risograph knows nothing about colour. It only prints where there should be more or less ink, and the colour is decided by the drum I put in.

The risograph display showing the file banany_black.pdf, 309 × 433 mm — The black layer arrives at the machine: banany_black.pdf, a 309 × 433 mm sheet.

I print on 309 × 433 mm sheets, a bit bigger than A3. The leopard and the row of bananas fit side by side on one sheet, and I only separate them at the end.

2. Yellow first

Loading a stack of paper into the risograph feed tray

I fan the paper so the sheets do not stick together and square it in the feed tray. I type in the number of copies and the machine makes a master from the yellow layer.

I always start with the lighter colour. If something goes wrong, it is easier to hide under yellow than under black.

Sheets with fluorescent yellow leopard silhouettes coming out into the tray — The first colour. The leopards are still just yellow silhouettes.

3. Drying

When I am in a hurry, a hair dryer helps.

Riso ink soaks into the paper and dries slowly. If I printed the second colour straight away, the yellow could smudge or transfer where it should not. So I let the sheets rest for a while, and when I am in a hurry, I use a hair dryer.

4. Black on top

I swap the drum for the black one, make a master from the black layer and put the printed sheets back in the feed tray. Only now do I see whether the registration works, whether the spots land where they belong.